Should Partisan Primaries Still Exist?

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Each election cycle, voters head to the polls to elect new leaders but before that, in most cases, they vote to pick the candidates.

Right now in any given election year, voters are asked up to three times to cast ballots for local offices. In some cases, that can confuse voters into thinking they've already voted in the final election, when in most cases they've only voted in the primary.

There's also the issue of money.

Some argue having all of these trips to the ballot box is too costly for the tax payer. In fact, it costs Shelby County a million dollars to run the primaries. The election commission says if you cut the partisan primaries, it would essentially make voting in Shelby County free. That's because the state and federal governments reimburse the county for the August Primary and the November General.

Just last week, Shelby County Commissioner John Pellicciotti, introduced a move that would have done away with partisan primaries. His argument for doing away with the primaries was the cost. But his proposal failed, with commissioners voting right along party lines.

Would ending partisan primaries save money? And would it make elections more efficient?

Shelby County Republican Chair, Lang Wiseman, and Blogger Steve Steffens joined FOX 13 to go further into the issue. Plus, Darrell Greene finds out what Shelby County voters think of the new idea.